Eduard 1/48 Bf109G-6 Late ProfiPACK
By Chris Cowx
History:
I will avoid a complete rundown of the history of the Bf109 series, since most here probably already know as much as they care to about this classic aircraft. Suffice it to say that as the most produced military aircraft of all time and as an iconic Luftwaffe fighter aircraft, the Bf109 has been well served by historians.
The new Eduard kit represents the G-6 series. The G-6 was the most produced variant of the 109; well over 10,000 units were built from mid 1943 until nearly War's end. It was introduced, along with its pressurized counterpart the G-5, as an up gunned development of the "G" or "Gustav" series. The G-5 and G-6 were the first to use the Rhein-Metal Borsig MG131 13mm machine guns mounted above the engine, with a distinctive bulge in the cowling to accommodate the larger weapons. This bulge earned the variants the nickname of "Beule" or "Bump". The G-6 served on virtually every front and with all of Germany's allies until the end of the War. It went through a large number of production revisions, field modifications and upgrades throughout its service life, making for a bewildering variety of features. Similarly, this long service life and widespread use allows for an incredible variety of markings and paint schemes. No wonder they are the darling of modelers the world over!
Not only does the prototype offer a rich history, so does the kit itself have a certain infamy! Who in modeling world can forget the cries of horror in 2014 when Eduard released its original tooling of the Gustav , with a huge and controversial ad campaign, only to have it found to have significant dimensional issues. Modelers can be unforgiving, and the fallout was loud.
Well, Eduard has owned up, took it on the chin and retooled the entire thing. Hats off to them, they have corrected the issues, and without giving the end of this review away, Eduard has engineered the best 109 kit available, in any scale. Unfortunate for all about the first round, but a brilliant effort and well done in the end!
The Review:
First of all, I am going to give a modeler's perspective, rather than an aviation historian's view. By that I mean I am not going to go into minutiae about the various trim tabs and other tiny details that differentiate the more obscure variants. Rest assured, these details are present! Similarly, the kit has been "checked" by the accuracy police and declared to be accurate overall, with the usual few little nitpicks that every single kit ever created has. Others have done this already and better than I. My observations will be more focused towards the kit's overall detail and engineering.
Impressions in the box are excellent. The molding is very fine, with sharp details, thin edges, full riveting and of course no flash whatsoever. The finish is very smooth without quite having the glassy finish of some Tamiya kits. There is a fret of color photo etch, primarily the belts, radiator faces, instrument panels and some smaller details for the cockpit. This fret is small, but the details are calculated to get the best bang for the buck. Between the p/e parts and the excellent plastic there is not much needed for a museum quality model, straight from the box. There is a set of pre-cut canopy masks included, made from what appears to be a crepe tape similar to Tamiya's excellent product. The instructions are in the same format that Eduard has been using for the past decade or so. They are printed with some color to clarify some points in construction, with full color markings guides in the back. The instructions are clear and easy to use and will be a pleasure to work from. If ever a kit screamed "build me" from it's box, this is it!
The kit includes all the needed parts to make any G-5, G-6 or an early G-14. As always with any 109, a bit of research to find out exactly what combination of rudder, wheels, tail fin, canopy, antennas, etc. is correct for the plane you want to build will be time well spent. Chances are you will find the parts among the sprues! There are many parts marked not for use with the exact markings supplied, but they can be used to get specific details right. Several different drop tanks, bombs and racks, gun gondolas, etc. give even further possibilities. Furthermore, there are many parts, such as wheels and props, that indicate that other variants are in the works. A casual look would indicate that they are intended for earlier variants, which is borne out by the recent release of an Bf109F-4 from Eduard. I would expect to see an F-2, G-2 and G-4 released in due course. I am also hopeful of seeing a G-10, late G-14 or K-4 from Eduard, but I don't know if they plan to release those versions or not.
In looking over the engineering of the kit, it is a bit more complicated than a Hasegawa kit, but it is well thought out. The slightly larger parts count is from things like separate piano hinges for the top of the cowling, five parts to make up the horizontal tail surfaces, three for the fin/rudder, three for the supercharger intake, etc. The engineering is smart, and the result is both better detail and also some functional benefits. The control surfaces are positionable for example, with a recess for the elevators and rudder to sit in formed by the bevels on each part. The different fins and rudders give flexibility on how many variants can be built from the kit. The flaps and radiator outlets are pose able and a nice touch is the mounting tabs. Panel lines are as perfect as one could ask. They are crisp and deep enough that they will show up well under paint, without being overdone. The rivets are there, but are perfectly in scale. Rather than just doing the rivets on the cowling and other prominent areas as some kits do, this one has the entire aircraft done. They will show-barely-under a coat of paint, just as they should. Something else that I have grown to appreciate in the last few Eduard kits I have examined is the new "slide molding" technology. This allows things like gun barrels, vents and exhaust stacks to be molded with the ends indented. This is generally sufficient to create a hollow effect and is an excellent start if you wish to drill them out further. The fabric detail is quite crisp, with the rib tapes and even stitching represented. It will be slightly over scale, but I think it will look good under some paint. Overall, Eduard's 109G-6 is as near to perfect as you will likely get.
The cockpit is very nicely represented also. The plastic is well done with the smaller parts such as control sticks, trim wheels, etc. all molded commendably thin. They look very much in scale and don't have the flat look that p/e can have in such items. The instrument panel and some side consoles are in color p/e, which eliminates the need to paint, but I would not hesitate to use the plastic parts. They will look just as nice, if well painted and the panel has a very nice 3 dimensional effect that would look good with some instrument decals and a drop of clear gloss in the faces. One thing that differs from most other 109 kits is that there are no separate sidewalls: the detail is molded directly on the inside if the kit. This gives a more "in scale" appearance, with a bit less of the thickness you see in some kits. The p/e bits give the usual belts as well as things like the chains for the trim wheels, canopy braces and microphone wire. As I mentioned, these parts are well planned to give maximum benefit without bogging the builder down with a bunch of tiny metallic fly specks that only he will know is there. My own choice would be to paint the instrument panel and consoles, to keep the 3 dimensional effect, while using the chains and seat belts. That is just my preference and if one prefers the painted details on the p/e then you can go that way. The instructions leave it up to the modeler,and so will I! One piece of pretty slick engineering is the clear plastic molded fuel line. This is a very prominent feature of all 109's, being painted bright yellow with a clear part for verifying fuel flow. By leaving the clear section bare and painting the rest it will look great. I must say, having a 1" thick high pressure fuel hose running about a foot from my right elbow would not give me much comfort in a combat aircraft! Overall, a brilliant effort that can be done with all plastic or can be enhanced with the p/e.
One area that is a highlight of this kit is the wheel wells. These have been done to various levels of detail in the past, but Eduard has put as much effort here as anywhere else in the kit. The plastic has the fabric dust shields molded in and the openings into the wing interior are also properly represented. There are four pieces to each wheel well interior, plus the wing upper surfaces have the bulge in place to accommodate the tire, eliminating the "flat roof" look from inside. The wheels themselves, always a kit trouble spot, seem pretty good and they have separate hubs to make painting easier. The fit of the gear leg is pretty positive, which will help alignment and make a sturdy model. The gear doors are commendably thin and have a good positive attachment point. This model will look good sitting on a mirror on a contest table, or overturned in a crash diorama!
The clear parts are gorgeous and plentiful! There is every combination of canopy and antenna that was used, all rendered in beautifully thin plastic. The framing is crisp, the glass is distortion free and the rivet detail that I praised above is continued onto the framing. There is also clear parts for the wingtip lights, which can be glued in either before painting or after. I have nothing but praise for the clear parts, well thought out and well executed!
The kit comes with 5 marking options. All are colorful, interesting and are from various theatres and units. Three are in the standard 74/75/76, one is overall 76 and the last is in NMF. Decals are extremely complete, with full stencils and all other markings supplied. Instruments are also supplied as a decal, though I personally would punch out the instruments individually and put them in the dial faces. As expected, the decals are thin, in register and colorful. From the look of them, they should work as well as any aftermarket available. A nice touch is the very fine squiggles on the vertical fin of the NMF option is also supplied as a decal, since it would be near impossible for most to paint them.
In case you have not guessed, I am impressed with this kit. Very impressed! It has detail, fit, surface detail, accuracy and excellent clear parts. It will make a fair modeler look good and a good modeler into a rock star. Highly recommended. I would like to thank Eduard for the review sample.